What we used: Bondage Boutique slim riding crop whip in red
From: Lovehoney
Price: £14.99
Material(s): Leather, plastic

The second in our series of posts on Christian Grey’s playthings, in which we discover that crops with slightly imperfect handles are extremely flexible and feel very, very nice when applied to one’s bottom.

Important: If you haven’t already, please read the Behind the Chintz Curtain Disclaimer.

First impressions …

Lizzie
The crop arrives in a long, plain, brown box the day after I order it. Quick, prompt, discrete. I wait until Thomas arrives home from work before breaking into the packaging as we want to examine the crop for the first time together.

Some frenzied ripping of tape from the box later and we find the crop encased in a clear plastic sleeve and tagged with a Bondage Boutique swing tag on the wrist strap.

The crop itself is 27.5 inches (69.85 centimetres) long, with a red leather tab at the business end. The shaft appears to be made of a flexible plastic cane (which Thomas takes great delight in flexing and bending into a U-shape to see just how malleable it really is – gulp). A leather wrist strap is fixed immediately below the painted wooden handle and, to be honest, the latter is the only visually disappointing feature; on the crop we receive, it is slightly scratched and chipped. That said, for £14.99 I’m more than happy to live with the imperfection, especially since I’m not sure if I’m going to like how it feels when applied! (Hey, there’s a recession going on.)

Thomas
The crop looks okay but the slightly damaged handle is not the best. The business part of the crop (the leather tab) is of good quality, subtle leather and looks to be well attached and not flimsy. The handle is flexible but stiff enough so you can still have good control (and most importantly, aim).

The road test …

Lizzie
Unfortunately, we aren’t able to try out our new toy immediately after unpacking it, other than giving each other a few playful swats (real life intruded) so Thomas puts it away until we had the time to put it through its paces properly. When it does come out … I’ll be honest, I’m nervous. Full disclosure, we’ve been dabbling with impact play for a while, but have always avoided the long, thin, instruments, such as canes and, well, crops like this one. I don’t know why – I just have it in my head that the sting might not be something I can tolerate.

My worries are unfounded. To start with, Thomas simply holds the crop and runs the leather tab very, very lightly over my body to get me used to the feel of it. The feeling is absolutely delicious and the gentle teasing makes me feel much more relaxed about what is to come. And when he does eventually connect a proper blow, the feeling is different to what I’m expecting. Although the sting is quite localised, confined to the area around the leather tab, it leaves a lovely burning sensation in its wake, rather than the cutting sharpness I’m anticipating. The leather tab makes a very satisfying sound when it hits the skin, too (a sharp ‘thwack’), which only serves to enhance all the other senses and sensations that are in play.

Once he starts using the crop in earnest, Thomas continues to vary the force and placement of the blows (although keeping them to my fleshy padded parts, i.e. my bottom and thighs), intermittently stopping to rub the sting with his hand and the leather end of the crop.

All in all, the experience is a very good one, as evidenced by the fact that the crop is eventually cast aside and we became distracted by … other things.

Thomas
The crop is a nice toy to use in conjunction with a blindfold or a mask. The leather tab on the end is quite soft and so can be gently used to tease and caress parts of the body and increase anticipation before the ‘shock’ of a blow. That said, the crop works well when applied with more force as it is stiff enough so the blows can be aimed accurately – quite important as you want the tab to impact and not the stick support. Also, the tab is large enough to make this easier but not so large that it feels like you are slapping her with a fish. I would recommend a few practice whacks on yourself first to get your aim and reach right and to gauge how hard you are actually hitting. Lizzie responds very well to the crop and her reaction to some good, firm strokes with it are extremely satisfying.

The verdict?

Lizzie
I really like this crop. Really like it. For the price, I think it was well worth taking the time to experiment with and I’ve discovered I love the way it feels when applied to my skin – both softly and with more force. Would I recommend it? Absolutely, but I can see that a crop in the flesh – as opposed to on the pages of a book – won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. This is definitely one for those who like their pleasure edged with a little bit of bite and have a partner they trust to dish out the latter.

Thomas
A good item, well worth buying if your partner is up for something more intense, although it can be used very effectively in a more limited way as a tease or a implied threat to heighten the tension as a prelude to other things …

In summary

Things we liked:

• The feel. The leather tip feels delicious when stroked gently over the body and gives a very lovely localised burn when applied to the flesh with more vigour.
• Using it. It’s easy to handle and control.
• The price. Relatively inexpensive. (If you decide you don’t like how it feels, you haven’t lost a fortune.)

Things we weren’t so keen on:

• Finishing could have been better – the handle on our crop was a bit scuffed and scratched – but for the price, it wasn’t a big deal.

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